South Africa IRES 2010

Background Information

Science, conservation, and social conflict in South Africa

The University of Connecticut Academic Plan “emphasizes the need to build on our strengths in human rights, education, and environmental research and to prepare our students for work and personal success as participants in an internationalized economy and an increasingly diverse society.” A faculty/student study group focused on the relationships between conservation and human rights in South Africa will serve these needs particularly well. The natural biological communities of the Western Cape region of South Africa are as diverse as those of tropical rainforests, but they face threats from climate change and economic development. The legacy of apartheid has left the equally diverse human society of South Africa with great inequality, which can lead to conflicts between conservation and human rights.

“At Greenmarket Square in the center of [Cape Town], an old man exclaimed: “They are very quick to put out the fire when the mountain is burning, but when our shacks burn you never see them. They care about the birds and the tortoises and the antelopes more than they care about human beings.” Two flower sellers in voluminous Cape Malay robes quickly admonished him, “They’ve got to protect our proteas, old man!”” (
Zakes Mda, “South Africa’s Fire Kingdom”, New York Times, 29 November 2009; http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/29/opinion/29mda.html)

Purpose
The study group will explore how efforts to conserve biodiversity in South Africa intersect with efforts to promote human rights and economic development. Its purpose is to introduce students to South Africa as a case study in the intersection of scientific, conservation, and human rights issues. Its conservation focus will be on plants and habitats, reflecting the ecological expertise of the faculty involved. Its human rights focus will focus on the social and political development of South Africa from the Anglo-Boer war at the turn of the 20th century to the present.

Required Reading/Preparation:

You should arrive every week having read what ever information has been starred(*) and linked to the meeting dates below, and be ready to discuss this.

Discussion Schedule

Week of:

Topic

Information/Readings

20 January

Introduction and Logistics plus film: Breaker Morant

(*)Overview (*)Breaker Morant Notes

South African History Time-Line
Abbreviated Time-Line for European-African conflicts

27 January

film: Power of One

(*)film notes

3 February

film: Cry Freedom

(*)film notes

10 February

film: Bopha!

(*)film notes

17 February

film: Red Dust

(*)film notes

24 February

film: Tsotsi

(*)film notes

3 March

film: Invictus

(*)film notes Some other South African films:

17 March

book discussion: 2 novellas by JM Coetzee: Dusklands: The Narrative of Jacobus Coetzee and Boyhood: Scenes from a Provincial Life